Exclusive: Etrian Odyssey’s Devs on Adapting Its Touchscreen to Switch and Its $80 Price Point
When Nintendo ditched the 3DS shortly after the release of the Nintendo Switch, one of the first questions fans asked was if this meant the end of the Etrian Odyssey. A popular dungeon crawling series that originally debuted on the Nintendo DS, Sekaiju no Labyrinth was built around the dual touchscreen design that defined its platform. Technically, it could have been replicated on the Switch, but it tended to be much more cumbersome.
In February, Atlus addressed some of those concerns with the Etrian Odyssey Origins Collection, a remastered collection that brings the first three games to PC and Switch. In a new exclusive interview with IGN, the developer of Etrian Odyssey HD (preferring to be recognized as a team rather than an individual) expands on the challenge of bringing the franchise’s unique touchscreen control to the new platform. bottom. They also talked about how they tackle difficulty, why they chose the game they did, and the somewhat controversial $80 price tag.
You can read the full interview below. The Etrian Odyssey Origins Collection launches his June 1st on Nintendo Switch and PC.
IGN: What was the process of figuring out how to adapt the touchscreen mapping from Etrian Odyssey to the Nintendo Switch? Was it a lot of trial and error?
Etrian Odyssey Development Team: Understanding the mapping controls was certainly the hardest part of the project, with a lot of trial and error. Map drawing has always been a core component of Etrian Odyssey. [EO] Although I have experience, it was originally a system optimized and specialized for Nintendo DS. However, considering the future development of the series, it is inevitable to move to the latest platform. So the question of how reproducible that mapping experience was was definitely the biggest pain point during development.
Of course, Switch with touchscreen functionality is the most compatible hardware in that regard, but as many people are aware, the mechanism is different between DS and Switch. I knew I had to figure out a way to make it possible, and that the experience had to be fun. We developed a prototype version early on to see how the touchscreen worked, but after our initial review, we realized the mechanics needed work and further tweaking.
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In particular, we had to figure out how to deal with issues such as the sensitivity of touch detection, the layout and spacing of map tools, and how to account for the fact that the player’s hands block much of the screen. The stylus will. We extended development several times to reach a final quality we were happy with.
Of course, we’ve made it possible to create maps manually by tapping your finger on the screen with optional settings (such as the option to adjust the cursor position added for finger taps). However, if you prefer to focus on exploring the dungeon or prefer playing with a controller or fingers, you can also set the automapping setting to FULL (automatically map floors and walls). You can always choose the option that best suits your personal play style.
IGN: Why did Atlus choose to focus on the first three games in particular? Have you ever considered including the Untold games, or elements from those games?
EO team: With EO’s first foray into a modern platform, we wanted to start at the true beginning of the series. Fans have been asking for ports of these classic games. We also wanted to be able to introduce the series to new players who may not have had the chance to play the original before, he wanted to focus on the core EO gameplay that the three games offered. It was. However, we also know that modern gamers have certain expectations when it comes to gameplay experiences, so we’ve updated many of our systems to match the latest releases of series like Sekaiju no Labyrinth Nexus. We think gamers will find this experience very easy to use.
IGN: Tell us about the process of remastering the graphics and soundtrack. What was Atlus’ most important goal? What subtleties did fans find interesting?
EO team: For fans, we know art by Yuji Hinata and music by Yuzo Kojo are some of the most beloved elements of this series. I wanted to express them in the most beautiful way possible. Fans will love seeing his original art in more vivid and eye-popping colors, and hearing the original soundtrack as if it had just stepped out of the composer’s studio.
These remastered titles also include all-new character portraits for each class, giving players a total of five portraits to choose from per class. EO3 also includes an exciting new battle track that we hope fans will enjoy.
Additionally, these remasters now allow players to choose their favorite portrait for their character. In previous games, you were limited by your character’s class, but now you can choose any image of any class within each game! You can’t cross-select portraits from job classes in the game, or apply portraits from other classes to the “Beast” (called “Pet” in Japanese version) class.
IGN: The original Etrian Odyssey game is notoriously difficult. Will the difficulty be readjusted?
EO team: These remasters allow players to choose from three different difficulty levels (Picnic, Basic, Expert) to find the gameplay experience that works best for them, and adjust the difficulty at any time by returning to the main town. can. area. You can experience the difficulty of the original game by choosing expert mode. This adjustment is shared by all three of his titles. This is because the planning team wanted to keep the difficulty carefully crafted in the original game to ensure a thrilling combat experience. We recommend Expert Mode for players who want to immerse themselves in more advanced battles, and Basic Mode and Picnic Mode for players who want to enjoy more casual dungeon exploration. We’ve also adjusted certain skills that weren’t working properly, but left certain specs intact that can be used strategically towards a player’s advantage.
IGN: Etrian Odyssey is currently 16 years old. Ever thought this series would have such lasting appeal, considering the niche genre?
EO team: I appreciate the fan support the series has gotten. Looking back at how we conceptualized the series, we wanted to take the foundation of that classic adventure RPG and build something new on top of it. I’ve been enjoying tabletop adventure games with graph paper in front of me since before the advent of video games. There is something about the experience of building your own party of adventurers and exploring mysterious locations with a timeless charm. The EO series is in a long tradition of scratching the itch for those who love that kind of gameplay.
IGN: Is the PC version being developed with the Steam Deck in mind?
EO team: We created the game to give you a fun experience on your PC with a mouse and keyboard. We haven’t made any specific adjustments to the Steam Deck as the project was in progress long before we had the test kit.
IGN: Will this open the door to the new World Tree Labyrinth on Nintendo Switch or other platforms? What about the new Persona Q?
EO team: We can’t make any promises at this time, but we can’t wait to see how fans receive these HD remasters!
Sega of America: Yes, the collection can be purchased for $80. This purchase gives players over 30 hours of gameplay on Sekaiju no Odyssey HD and over 50 hours of gameplay on Sekaiju no Odyssey II and III, plus a free copy of other Atlus IP popular characters upon pre-order. You can get the DLC portrait set. This is a lot of content and gameplay that players will be very excited about in his first three games in the remastered series for Nintendo Switch and Steam.
Kat Bailey is IGN’s Senior News Editor and co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Any tips? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.
